For the bikers

While I certainly don't take a bike to school from my home about 30 miles away, a lot of commuters do travel on two wheels. Walking down 3rd Street toward PPG place it's easy to see how many Point Parkers rely on bikes to get around--the bike rack outside of Thayer is always full with all varieties of bicycle. Commuters who currently travel by bicycle or who are thinking about it might want to check out this site for information and tips on this type of commute.

The End is Nigh

The end of my 4+ years of commuting is near! Sure, I may have to commute to a job in the future, but for now--I'm excited to be done with the bus. Sure I'm also excited about graduating and being done with school, but somehow, the concept of no longer having to get the bus each morning and afternoon really has a warm place in my heart.

Bus Passes

I typically buy a weekly bus pass from my local Giant Eagle, it's 10 trips for $27. I went to get one this weekend so I would have a pass for this coming week. They were out until Monday. So now I have to scrounge around for ones and quarters. It's $3.00 each way and I have exactly $3 in my wallet. I could go to an ATM but it won't give me ones and I need exact change. Time to go beg my mother! Hurray!

Double Transportation

My car was failing me at the end of the week. Even though I rely on a bus to get me Downtown, I rely on my car to get me to the bus stop. Relying on two forms of transportation to get where you're going only creates more opportunity for failure. I could walk to the bus stop, but what is a drive of only a few minutes would be about a 15-20 minute walk involving crossing a main highway. Oh, the perils of commuting.

Oops

I went to school as usual yesterday. Around 11am I got a text from my boyfriend saying he was going to be working from home because he slept through his alarm. I immediately begged him to come pick me up from school in a few hours after my last class because it would save me from waiting around for over an hour until the bus arrived. He agreed and came for me a bit later. We drove home, made a quick stop at the grocery store and spent the rest of the night at home. UNTIL...at about 11pm, just before I was going to sleep, it hit me. My car was still parked at my bus stop! I don't solely rely on a bus to get from my home to school, I drive my car about 3 or 4 minutes to the bus stop in the tiny town of Irwin, across Rt. 30 from where I live. So yes, I had forgotten all about it and surely would have been out of luck in the morning when I went to drive to the bus stop once again and my car was not outside our apartment. Reluctant to get up and go get it that late, I had to get up early with my boyfriend the next morning so he could drop me off for the bus.

Annoyed on the bus

There are certainly unwritten rules of the bus--I often refer to this code of conduct as "bus etiquette". It's come to my attention that not everyone seems to have picked up on this code, and here I will have to call them out.

Headphones: On the top of my list of bus annoyances are those people who have headphones on but have either music so loud or headphones so poorly made that their music blares for all around them to hear. See everyone around you casting hateful glances? Yeah, we're all thinking we don't want to listen to your "Club Hits Vol. 8" and that you need to invest in better headphones or turn the volume down.

Food: It amazes me the variety of food that people bring on the bus with them. I can see snacking on a granola bar or something of that nature but bring a personal pizza onto the bus? A subway sandwich? First, while they smell good--I don't want to ride for an hour smelling food I can't eat. Second, these choices just seem messy. If the bus hits a pothole, the person in front of them is going to end up with a hat of mozzarella and sauce or the floor will be carpeted in shredded lettuce. These just aren't travel foods, people!

Phones: It's understandable if you need to make a quick call on your phone to handle some kind of important business while you're on the bus. It's also understandable to answer your ringing phone (and preferable if you have an ultra obnoxious ringtone) while you're on the bus--but carrying on hour long conversations just isn't appropriate. The people that don't understand this rule, also insist on speaking loudly and about inappropriate topics. We don't want to hear your conversation but in such close quarters, it's unavoidable. Tell your caller you're on the bus and will call them back when you get off, please.

Baggage: This is a commuter bus, it goes from Greensburg to Pittsburgh--not from Ohio to Pittsburgh. There is no need for the amount of baggage some people bring on the bus with them. A briefcase is acceptable. A backpack or messenger bag is acceptable. A purse is acceptable. One passenger will all three of these accessories and more is not acceptable. Everyone on the bus will roll their eyes as if synchronized and a passenger gets on lugging a tote bag, a duffle bag, a suitcase, a purse, etc with them up the aisle. Each person in an aisle seat is bound to be cracked in the head with one or more pieces of this excessive baggage. I see no need for it! Sometimes I see women (the business type who wear skirts, pantyhose, and sneakers) with a purse inside of a slightly bigger purse/tote bag. This isn't quite as unacceptable as it is weird.

If you fit into any of these categories, stay off the bus.

Eco-bus update

I ended my last post with disappointment as I was thrilled to hear of new technologies in electric buses, but was discovering that in ten years there didn't seem to be any new developments. I was wrong however. Once again, I've looked to the New York Times and this article, written in October of this year, explains that fleets of electric buses have in fact been showing up across the country over the past ten years.

"Transit systems from New York to Taipei, and from Ames, Iowa, to Ann Arbor, Mich., are adding hybrid buses at a rapid clip," the article explains. "New York, by far, has the nation’s biggest fleet of hybrid buses, which run on electricity and diesel fuel, with nearly 1,000 in all five boroughs, most in Manhattan."

One of the main problems with the buses mentioned in the previous article was their cost, at $1 million, it seemed impossibly expensive for cities across the country to replace their public transportation system with these new vehicles. The latest Times article says "the price has dropped by half, although hybrid buses are still twice as expensive as conventional diesel buses."

Still, the savings in fuel costs that these buses bring to city budgets (50,000 gallons of diesel fuel saved for a 45 percent improvement on fuel economy) may make them a worthwhile investment.

Check out the article and consider the possibility of these buses appearing on the streets of Pittsburgh in the future.

Eco-buses

Commuters relying on mass/public transportation may feel like they're doing their part to keep the environment clean because they're not all driving to the city alone in their cars, each puffing carbon dioxide exhaust into the air. But what about the buses? Sure, the number of buses needed to carry throngs of commuters to and from the city is much less than the number of cars it would require to carry that same amount--but buses are certainly not the cleanest forms of transportation. Anyone standing at a bus stop can tell as these beasts roll by, often sputtering toxic black clouds and noxious fumes from their rear ends.

I did find hope for the future of buses from this New York Times article. Writer Matthew Wald reports that electric buses are making their way into rotation, specifically as shuttles between terminals at the Logan Airport in Boston. According to the article, these new vehicles are "powered by two electric motors, one for each rear wheel, and a natural gas engine" and are composed of "more fiberglass than steel, [and] is two-thirds the weight of a regular bus."

A drawback to these eco-buses are their cost, which is about four times that of a typical gas-guzzling bus. As technology progresses, it is suspected that the price for electric buses will drop. The added bonus of fuel savings may factor in to making the bus more affordable as well.

While I immediately felt hope when I read this article about the future of mass transportation, I will admit my heart sank a bit when I noticed the piece was written in 1999--TEN YEARS AGO! Maybe ten years is a drop in the bucket when it comes to electric transportation technology, but it definitely makes me feel like we should have been seeing these vehicles rolling out in mass production by now.

Bus drivers are bad drivers

Reading this article from the Chicago Tribune was shocking and not shocking at the same time. A bus driving through someone's home? Wow, that's crazy! Can I imagine any of my bus drivers doing the same? Yes.

Just the other day one driver (who I often refer to as Angry White Haired Guy) blatantly drove through a red light by Duquesne University. Student pedestrians on the sidewalk were all shooting him enraged looks as he pulls right through throngs of people attempting to cross the street--he drove right through the red light. I've been in the bus with this same driver when he was involved in a bit of a fender bender in Oakland. He has road rage and thinks because his vehicle is bigger than most of the others, he can drive however he wants. It's definitely a bit disturbing at times.

Extreme Commuting

This Business Week article tells the sad tale of extreme commuters--those poor souls who travel up to six hours from their homes to their jobs. The idea that their salary, affordable home, or closeness to good schools or family may lead extreme commuters to take up these travel habits but often doesn't last long. One man quoted in the article claims it's the biggest mistake of his life.

The article also grimly reports that, "studies show that commuters are on average much less satisfied with their lives than noncommuters" and "commuting is also associated with raised blood pressure, musculoskeletal disorders, increased hostility, lateness, absenteeism, and adverse effects on cognitive performance."

After reading this article, I definitely don't feel as bad about my hour commute but do feel a sense of growing dread for the future. Many of these people travel for several hours to work out of necessity and who knows what job and home I'll find in the future. Still, if the option arose to take a well paying job or a more affordable home but face a six hour commute--I would probably have to opt for a different job or home.

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Commuter Pain

Check out this article that discusses a recent study on commuter related issues such as what gas prices make commuters consider alternative forms of transportation.
This link will take you directly to the study.

To the North Shore

For commuters coming from or going to the North Shore, there's a new method of travel in development. While it's currently creating a big mess downtown, as so much construction does, it may make commutes easier when it's finished. Check out this article by Chrissy Tautkus on The Globe's Web site.

Clingers

This post may make me sound like a bad person, but I think it needs to be said. I can't stand clingers on the bus--by "clinger" I mean someone who starts making small talk and then all the sudden wants to be your bus buddy, sitting with you on a regular basis and talking your ear off on the ride.

Recently someone sat with me on the way to school because the bus was pretty full, and that's fine. This person then goes on to ask me where I go to school, what my major is, what I plan to do with that major, how long have I been going to school, haven't they seen me on an earlier bus, blah blah blah. As anyone reads this blog knows, I use my bus trips to get in some much needed sleep, also--I'm not a naturally chatty person...so basically this whole situation was just an annoying morning. An annoying morning that continued as this clinger got off at the same bus stop as me and walked with me to my destination.

This clinger also sat with me a few days later when the bus was so empty there was no need for more than one person in a seat. Once again I was talked AT loudly by the clinger when I would have rather been sleeping.

Am I being rude for being annoyed by someone being "friendly" or is the clinger being rude by encroaching on my personal space?

Traveling Moms

I feel really bad for the mothers I see traveling via bus to or from the city. They're usually the only parent/adult trying to wrangle various aged children, strollers and other accessories.

Today, a young mother got on the bus in Oakland. First, her one daughter, who appeared to be about three ran up onto the bus and disappeared into the back of the bus somewhere. Then she had to lift up her other daughter, a very tiny baby in a carrier, to a helpful rider who took the baby carrier and placed it in the seat. Next she struggles to drag a stroller (although it was folded up, it still appeared to be massive) up the bus steps behind her and shove it into the seat across the aisle from where her little baby had been placed. She pays and then calls for her first daughter to come out of hiding on the back of the bus and move up next to her, the baby and the stroller. After a few stern words, the little girl meanders up front and takes a seat next to the colossal stroller.

What a cumbersome task all this seems...and here I thought it was a pain to commute without the added struggle that this poor young woman had to deal with.

Tunnel Traffic

Anyone who has ever driven into the city via the Parkway East has experienced the Squirrel Hill Tunnels. Anyone who's made this commute during rush hour knows how painfully irritating this part can be. Something happens in people's brains as they approach the tunnels. They ignore the posted signs declaring: Maintain Speed Through Tunnels. Instead, they must be doing some kind of calculations in their head, doubting that their Honda will fit through the gaping maw of this structure. Red brake-lights ignite and traffic does everything but maintain speed through tunnels. What once seemed to be flowing easily slows to a halt as drivers throw logic out the window and creep into the tunnel at a snail's pace.

Eventually you roll through the tunnel and pop out on the other-side, startled by the sunlight and returning radio reception. And wonder of all wonders--traffic is coasting along without a jam in sight. All the nervous nellies who had to brake at the entrance actually fit inside, and through and whiz out the other side in one piece. I suspect they will forget this momentous result the following day as they ease up to the tunnel with trepidation...as if a monster were lurking inside.

Bus Stops

Here is a slideshow collection of interesting bus stops from around the world.

From My Window

I don't know what it is about Carnegie Mellon University's trees, but every fall I'm mesmerized as my bus passes by these beautiful trees. They change to the most brilliant hues of yellow, orange and red that they practically glow. I'm thinking, based on their location at CMU, that they must be bio-engineered to be so pretty. Or maybe they're just holograms. You never know what those CMU scientists are up to.

Lost Time

One of the plights of being a commuter that I hate most of all is the loss of time. I wake up at 6:50am on Tuesdays and Thursdays when my first class doesn't start until 9:40am. Do I do this by choice? Of course not. I have to get up at this time so that I can catch the only bus that will get me Downtown before my class starts. I get on this bus at 7:30am and it arrives in Pittsburgh about an hour later. I then spend the next hour sleeping on the glorious couches on the 4th floor of Lawrence Hall. The next bus doesn't arrive until 8:56am, and would get me to class about twenty minutes late.

I get out of my Tuesday/Thursday classes by 12:50pm. This makes me fifteen minutes late for the 12:35pm bus, so now I'm lingering around campus until 2:35pm and get home at about a quarter 'til 4. The fact that I don't get home until about 3 hours after my last class has ended makes me nuts.

Not only am I losing time in transit, but in waiting for transit. I'm a slave to the bus schedules and it's not fun.

Change of Scenery

The city scenes that flash by the windows of the bus each day can get incredibly monotonous (that is, if you are staring out the window rather than sleeping). For some reason, from the start of this semester, I would tend to sit on the same side of the bus for my ride home each day. It was habit I guess, as there were plenty of empty seats and nothing particularly intriguing about this side of the bus. After a few weeks of this, however, I decided to break the cycle and sit on the other side. It proved to be a very interesting experience--suddenly the city scenes seemed new. A building I remembered being under construction last semester was now complete, the SPACE gallery was displaying a new show (which you can sometimes catch a glimpse of in passing, as the facade is completely transparent glass)...all in all, this switch of a seat really broke up that tedium and repetition of watching the same buildings go by each day.

I decided to remain on this side of the bus for another week or two and then, I switched back. This switch proved successful in breathing new life into the boring landscape I had become so familiar with at the beginning of the semester. A new shop had opened, and new and interesting graffiti decorated blank walls on the approach to Oakland.

I think this new found ability to rejuvinate the mundane and gain new perspective should be applied to all aspects of life, because by changing small parts of our routines, we can certainly gain new perspective, understanding, and enjoyment in the world around us.

Charted

According to information from this site, I've created this chart to show the various methods of transport that commuters frequently use. The "other" category includes travel by bike, motorcycle, taxi and walking. "Public Transit" includes travel by train, bus, streetcar, subway and ferry. This information applies to the US as a whole and not solely Pittsburgh.

Bus Drivers

I've had plenty of different bus drivers in my time as a commuter. Some are cheerful and pleasant and love to talk to their passengers. Others are wretched and miserable and respond to a courteous "thank you" with "okay" as they hit the gas before you've completely stepped from the bus to the sidewalk.

Some feel the need to express their individuality with the hole punch they use (The bus pass I buy for Westmoreland Transit is for ten trips, and has the numbers 1-10 on it, which are punched by the driver each time you board). One driver uses a star hole punch, while another inexplicably uses one shaped like a bone. I picture them standing in the crafts/scrapbooking aisle at Staples trying to decide on just the right hole punch shape to define their personalities.

One bus driver frequently pulls up to my stop in the afternoon eating a bowl of Wendy's chili and listening to oldies on a radio he has apparently brought from home and placed in the seat behind him.

It takes all kinds to drive a bus apparently, and I've certainly seen many of those kinds facilitating my commute each day.

Mapped

Here's a map of my daily commute from school to home. It looks so much longer all mapped out.


View Commute in a larger map

Rite of Passage

You haven't truly lived the commuter life until you've run for the bus. I certainly have--both successfully and unsuccessfully. Bonus points if you run in rain, snow, or high heels.

Graffiti

On occasion, I take a bus that travels from Downtown to Wilkinsburg via the East Busway. This trip is an opportunity to check out some pretty cool graffiti. Some pieces are better than others of course, but it definitely breaks up the monotonous scenery whizzing by the bus windows. Sure, it's illegal and some would call it vandalism, but I just can't make myself see it that way. It doesn't appear to be destroying anything of value--but rather adding color and visual interest to dilapitated buildings and crumbling walls. Take a tour of this improvised gallery next time you're traveling the East Busway and decide for yourself.

Get Up, Stand Up

It's completely expected (as it should be) to give your seat up on a bus to the elderly or disabled. Is it also expected for a man to give his seat up to a woman? In decades past when gender equality was more of an emerging idea (or nonexistent), it seems like a man giving his seat to a woman would just be an expected, everyday act.

It goes without saying that it is not pleasant to have to stand on the bus, especially in a commuter situation like mine where the ride is about an hour, not just a quick trip from Oakland to Downtown. Of course, standing for this ride is unpleasant for both men and women alike (though if you're a woman wearing pointy shoes with towering heels, the level of discomfort may be a smidge higher).

I've certainly seen men on my bus give their seats up for women--not many, but there are some who will do it every time. For me, however, it's never happened. Maybe I'm too young and am expected to pay my dues. Or maybe this is just a fading practice that's happening more and more infrequently and I've missed my opportunity.

So to answer my question, should a woman expect a man to give her his seat? No. Not this century--but maybe that's okay. Gender equality is more comforting than a cushy seat anyway.

Cell Phones

Msnbc.com did this article last week on regulating cell phone use by bus drivers and truck drivers. I know I've been on a bus where the driver is on their cell phone and it does make me a bit nervous, especially when their driving usually makes me nervous without a cell phone distracting them. I've even seen school bus drivers chatting away on their cells while kids fill the seats behind them. It just doesn't seem like a good idea. In fact, talking on your cell phone as a passenger isn't a good idea either because you're in pretty close quarters and no one wants to hear your business, and it's always the most inappropriate business that fellow riders are shouting into their phones while the people next to them pretend not to notice.

Unless it's really important and can't wait, just stay off the phone on the bus--drivers and passengers alike.

Sleep in Motion

As I've mentioned, I often sleep on the bus. When you have an hour of travel time to class (and you're not driving) sleeping just seems like the best option, especially on the really early morning commutes when it's still dark outside. Some people are so into sleeping on the bus that they bring travel neck pillows and small blankets. This seems a bit much to me, as it would mean carrying around naptime supplies throughout my day at school until I could get back on my rolling bed chamber and sleep my way home. All I need to sleep on the bus is either a seat to myself or someone sitting next to me who doesn't spend the ride chatting on the phone.

At this point in my commuting career (about 4 years), my internal clock has the ride pretty much timed and I tend to wake up about the same time each morning as the bus pulls off the busway onto Grant St. If you're new to sleeping on the bus, it might be a good idea to set an alarm on your phone or ipod to vibrate you awake about ten minutes prior to your stop.

I've never slept through my stop, but I've come close. I've also woken up way early, looked around in a daze completely perplexed by my surroundings and began to panic under the assumption I had missed it.

Keep in mind, it's easy to fall out of an aisle bus seat while nodding off, and it also might not be a good idea if you know yourself to be a heavy drooler or someone who talks in their sleep. Otherwise, it's a great use of time on the morning commute.

Killing Time

Most of the time I spend on the bus, I sleep. When I'm not sleeping, I tend to just gaze out the window and let my mind wander as a I watch people and absorb my surroundings. With headphones in my ears, I stare at people on the sidewalk waiting for buses of their own or drifting from one place to the next. As my ipod creates the soundtrack for the ride, I often find myself thinking that, were this a movie, these people would begin an elaborate dance number where they all know the steps and transform the city landscape into a musical extravaganza. I'm still waiting for this magical, musical experience to happen.

My bus travels through Oakland and parts of Shadyside and Point Breeze. Rolling through these tree-lined neighborhoods I become captivated by beautiful and diverse architecture. One stone house resembles a fairy-tale cottage while the next is modern, rectangular and resembles a Frank Lloyd Wright creation. On the other side of the street a Spanish style hacienda complete with cream colored stucco walls and terracotta tile roof is only doors away from a Gothic castle--it's dark stone walls and wrought iron gates resting in the shade of towering trees.
So while my mind wanders from what might be happening in the lives of passersby, to what type of cars are most common in the various neighborhoods, other people on the bus tend to read.

Reading is one of the most common ways to kill time on the bus. I spend most of my spare time with books, but I just can't focus on text when I'm on the bus. Some fellow riders use this time to catch up on current events with a newspaper spread out between their outstretched arms. A habit that appears to require way more space than exists in a bus seat, especially with a person seated next to you constantly dodging your pages and arms while you browse the sports section.

NewYorkTimes.com has put together this really interesting slideshow (and this article, it accompanies) on what people in NYC read on the subway. Check out what others are reading while I'm pondering the architecture of Pittsburgh suburbs.

A Little Guidance

The City Paper started the school year off with a great feature on how new students can navigate the PAT bus system and utilize it to find some great places around town. This story is really worth a read for commuters and city-dwellers alike. I personally don't rely on PAT to get where I'm going, but the tips offered by writer Al Hoff are extremely useful--he even highlights some essential bus etiquette that all riders should be aware of if they want to avoid death stares from their fellow passengers. Check out the story, and enjoy the ride!

The Commute

According to this article from the Tribune Review, "Pittsburgh ranks fourth among large cities for the highest percentage increase in population during the workday. The influx and outflux of the city's 138,000 commuters changes the population by 41.3 percent."
I'm one of these 138,000 commuters rolling into Pittsburgh each day. I travel about an hour into the city to go to school, and another hour or so get home. It's not always fun--in fact, I can't recall a single time it was "fun." From disgruntled bus drivers to smelly passengers, from lost time to lost money--this is the chronicle of a commuter's life in transit.